The Texas Health and Human Services Commission warned the Dallas office of the International Rescue Committee in a letter last week that it would be in violation of its contract with the state if it did not comply with Gov. Greg Abbott’s order to stop accepting Syrian refugees.
Advertisement
A humanitarian group has vowed that it will “absolutely” continue to help Syrian refugees resettle in Texas, defying a written notice from a state official last week that threatened legal action amid a nationwide backlash against Syrians who have fled the bloody conflict in their homeland.
As of November 17, 31 US states, including Texas, have refused to participate in the resettlement program and house Syrian refugees. The Obama administration, which says the vetting process is thorough and can take up to two years, has outlined a goal of bringing 10,000 more Syrian refugees to the us during the current budget year.
Texas state officials are threatening a local refugee resettlement agency with legal action should it continue aiding Syrian refugees.
“The Texas citizenry has not seen a secure border in over 30 years, and the crime problem in the cities is related to that”, Korkmas said from Houston, a sanctuary city.
At least two Syrian families have been redirected to other states after Gov. Mike Pence’s decision to temporarily bar them from entering Indiana.
With issues like funding for Planned Parenthood and Medicaid expansion, the state government and the federal government clearly have policy differences, Rosenthal says.
Opponents of taking in the refugees cite fears that the federal government’s screening process may fail to weed out extremists, a concern the HHS letter addresses. The bill would require new Federal Bureau of Investigation background checks and individual sign-offs from three high-ranking US officials before any refugee could come to the USA from Iraq or Syria, where the Islamic State group that has claimed credit for the attacks has flourished.
Anne Marie Weiss Armush, president of Dallas Fort Worth International Community Alliance, says Syrians are already put through a more extensive screening process than other refugees.
The White House sent new refugee information to all 50 governors, and a chart explaining how refugees are vetted before entry to the U.S. Governors can now regularly receive data on Syrian refugees, such as their nationality, age, race and sex, but not their names. “Even in those cases where refugees were arrested on terrorism-related charges, years and even decades often transpired between their entry into the United States and their involvement in terrorism”. They also offered to meet with Abbott.
They were provided assistance by Catholic Charities, a private relief organization, according to WBRZ.
A protester against the United States’ acceptance of Syrian refugees uses a USA flag to block a counter-protester’s sign that read “Refugees Welcome” during a demonstration at the Washington State capitol in Olympia, Washington, November 20, 2015.
Others agree. “The bottom line is, refugee admission is a federal matter, reflecting our values as a nation”, said Terri Burke, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas.
Advertisement
Applauding refugees in San Antonio, City Councilman Ron Nirenberg said, “I’ve gotten to experience the sense of optimism and hope that is strong in San Antonio’s refugee population”.
